Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB173 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	sb0173
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 173
8	8	K1 5lr1482
9	9	SB 844/24 – FIN (PRE–FILED) CF HB 217
10	10	By: Senators Klausmeier and Gile
11	11	Requested: October 30, 2024
12	12	Introduced and read first time: January 8, 2025
13	13	Assigned to: Finance
14	14
15	15	A BILL ENTITLED
16	16
17	17	AN ACT concerning 1
18	18
19	19	Workers’ Compensation – Occupational Disease Presumptions – Hypertension 2
20	20
21	21	FOR the purpose of establishing that certain firefighters, fire fighting instructors, rescue 3
22	22	squad members, advanced life support unit members, and members of the Office of 4
23	23	the State Fire Marshal demonstrate disablement for purposes of workers’ 5
24	24	compensation and are deemed to have hypertension for purposes of an occupational 6
25	25	disease presumption for hypertension if certain requirements are met; and generally 7
26	26	relating to occupational disease presumptions under workers’ compensation law. 8
27	27
28	28	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 9
29	29	Article – Labor and Employment 10
30	30	Section 9–502 11
31	31	Annotated Code of Maryland 12
32	32	(2016 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 13
33	33
34	34	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 14
35	35	Article – Labor and Employment 15
36	36	Section 9–503(a) 16
37	37	Annotated Code of Maryland 17
38	38	(2016 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 18
39	39
40	40	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 19
41	41	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 20
42	42
43	43	Article – Labor and Employment 21
44	44
45	45	9–502. 22
46	46
47	47	(a) In this section, “disablement” means the event of a covered employee becoming 23
48	48	partially or totally incapacitated: 24 2 SENATE BILL 173
49	49
50	50
51	51
52	52	(1) because of an occupational disease; and 1
53	53
54	54	(2) from performing the work of the covered employee in the last occupation 2
55	55	in which the covered employee was injuriously exposed to the hazards of the occupational 3
56	56	disease. 4
57	57
58	58	(b) Subsection (c) of this section applies only to: 5
59	59
60	60	(1) the employer in whose employment the covered employee was last 6
61	61	injuriously exposed to the hazards of the occupational disease; and 7
62	62
63	63	(2) the insurer liable for the risk when the covered employee, while 8
64	64	employed by the employer, was last injuriously exposed to the hazards of the occupational 9
65	65	disease. 10
66	66
67	67	(c) Subject to subsection (d) of this section and except as otherwise provided, an 11
68	68	employer and insurer to whom this subsection applies shall provide compensation in 12
69	69	accordance with this title to: 13
70	70
71	71	(1) a covered employee of the employer for disability of the covered 14
72	72	employee resulting from an occupational disease; or 15
73	73
74	74	(2) the dependents of the covered employee for death of the covered 16
75	75	employee resulting from an occupational disease. 17
76	76
77	77	(d) An employer and insurer are liable to provide compensation under subsection 18
78	78	(c) of this section only if: 19
79	79
80	80	(1) the occupational disease that caused the death or disability: 20
81	81
82	82	(i) is due to the nature of an employment in which hazards of the 21
83	83	occupational disease exist and the covered employee was employed before the date of 22
84	84	disablement; or 23
85	85
86	86	(ii) has manifestations that are consistent with those known to 24
87	87	result from exposure to a biological, chemical, or physical agent that is attributable to the 25
88	88	type of employment in which the covered employee was employed before the date of 26
89	89	disablement; and 27
90	90
91	91	(2) on the weight of the evidence, it reasonably may be concluded that the 28
92	92	occupational disease was incurred as a result of the employment of the covered employee. 29
93	93
94	94	(e) A covered employee or a dependent of the covered employee is not entitled to 30
95	95	compensation for a disability or death that results from an occupational disease if, when 31
96	96	the covered employee began employment with the employer, the covered employee falsely 32
97	97	represented in writing that the covered employee had not been disabled, laid off, or 33 SENATE BILL 173 3
98	98
99	99
100	100	compensated in damages or otherwise, due to the occupational disease for which the 1
101	101	covered employee or dependent is seeking compensation. 2
102	102
103	103	9–503. 3
104	104
105	105	(a) (1) A paid firefighter, paid fire fighting instructor, paid rescue squad 4
106	106	member, paid advanced life support unit member, or sworn member of the Office of the 5
107	107	State Fire Marshal employed by an airport authority, a county, a fire control district, a 6
108	108	municipality, or the State or a volunteer firefighter, volunteer fire fighting instructor, 7
109	109	volunteer rescue squad member, or volunteer advanced life support unit member who is a 8
110	110	covered employee under § 9–234 of this title is presumed to have an occupational disease 9
111	111	that was suffered in the line of duty and is compensable under this title if: 10
112	112
113	113	[(1)] (I) 1. the individual has heart disease[, hypertension,] or lung 11
114	114	disease; 12
115	115
116	116	[(2)] 2. the heart disease[, hypertension,] or lung disease results 13
117	117	in partial or total disability or death; and 14
118	118
119	119	[(3)] 3. in the case of a volunteer firefighter, volunteer fire 15
120	120	fighting instructor, volunteer rescue squad member, or volunteer advanced life support unit 16
121	121	member, the individual has met a suitable standard of physical examination before 17
122	122	becoming a firefighter, fire fighting instructor, rescue squad member, or advanced life 18
123	123	support unit member; OR 19
124	124
125	125	(II) 1. THE INDIVIDUAL HAS H YPERTENSION ; AND 20
126	126
127	127	2. IN THE CASE OF A VOL UNTEER FIRE FIGHTER, 21
128	128	VOLUNTEER FIRE FIGHT ING INSTRUCTOR , VOLUNTEER RESCUE SQU AD MEMBER, OR 22
129	129	VOLUNTEER ADVANCED L IFE SUPPORT UNIT MEM BER, THE INDIVIDUAL HAS M ET A 23
130	130	SUITABLE STANDARD OF PHYSICAL EXAMINATION BEFORE BECOMING A 24
131	131	FIREFIGHTER, FIRE FIGHTING INSTRU CTOR, RESCUE S QUAD MEMBER , OR 25
132	132	ADVANCED LIFE SUPPOR T UNIT MEMBER . 26
133	133
134	134	(2) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY O THER PROVISION OF TH IS TITLE, AN 27
135	135	INDIVIDUAL DEMONSTRA TES DISABLEMENT UNDE R § 9–502 OF THIS SUBTITLE AND 28
136	136	IS DEEMED TO HAVE HY PERTENSION UNDER PAR AGRAPH (1)(II)1 OF THIS 29
137	137	SUBSECTION IF THE INDIVIDUAL : 30
138	138
139	139	(I) HAS BLOOD PRESSURE R EADINGS THAT EXCEED 140 MM HG 31
140	140	SYSTOLIC OR 90 MM HG DIASTOLIC AS REQUI RED FOR A FINDING OF HYPERTENSION 32
141	141	UNDER THE 2022 EDITION OF THE NATIONAL FIRE PROTECTION ASSOCIATION 1582 33
142	142	STANDARD ON COMPREHENSIVE OCCUPATIONAL MEDICAL PROGRAM FOR FIRE 34
143	143	DEPARTMENTS ; AND 35
144	144	4 SENATE BILL 173
145	145
146	146
147	147	(II) HAS BEEN REQUIRED TO USE PRESCRIBED MEDICATIO N TO 1
148	148	TREAT HYPERTENSION FOR AT LEAST 90 CONSECUTIVE DAYS . 2
149	149
150	150	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 3
151	151	October 1, 2025. 4
152	152